The course's theoretical point of departure is the essentially social and cultural character of language which emphasizes that communicating with and through language is a dialogic activity located in space and time that is subject to perspectival interpretation. Through a theoretical and practical investigation of the contexts of diverse texts, participants become aware of the nature of human consciousness under particular cultural and historical conditions. Beyond such general considerations, the course focuses on the experience of second/foreign language learning, construction of the self through and in light of language use, and the increasingly problematic assumption of a privileged monolingualism and its consequent construction of the "native" and the "non-native" or "foreign." Through diverse "border crossings" it highlights the condition of German culture and the German language as both the Native and the Foreign.

Credits: 3

Prerequisites: None

Other academic yearsThere is information about this course number in other academic years: